Angel.
My sweet Karina.
My love.
You were the only one…
My head snapped up as my eyes opened.
The steady beeping of the heart monitor got louder as my vision cleared. The hum of the machines by the bed reminded me of where I was. In the seventh circle of hell. I looked at Col, who was lying in the bed, his pale, tattooed skin free of any blood and dirt. His eyes were closed, tubes and wires were sticking out of his arms and mouth. Dr. Stevens said he was keeping Collin’s trach in until his heart gained its strength back.
The surgery was successful. He managed to repair the tissue and stop any internal bleeding. That was hours ago. It was now three in the morning and the hallway outside was quiet, despite Dean sitting outside the door. We were no longer on the prisoner floor, and I suspected Haley had something to do with that.
The rest of the group were down in the waiting room last I heard. Gwen and Haley brought me a change of clothes, and I showered in here. I didn’t remember eating it but there were scraps of a grilled cheese sandwich on the tray by the window. Uncle Sullie came in briefly and broke down in front of me. He took my face in his big hands and kissed my forehead. His words are engraved in my mind and would be until the day I left this planet.
My sins were the cause of your nightmares, and I will never forgive myself for it.
I told him protecting this city from monsters wasn’t a sin. Jer hadn’t come by, not that I expected him to, but it still hurt like hell. James came in shortly after Collin was brought back from surgery. He stood at the end of the bed and stared at the man before focusing on me.
You were right, by the way. He has saved countless lives, but I will be in his debt because of her.
My soul was hopeful James would help Collin, but I knew it was out of his hands. Deacon, the masked man who brought us into the tunnel, was in custody at the field office, being questioned. Casey stopped by to tell me and also slipped me a note from him as well.
He’ll survive. Mr. Stevens is the strongest man I know. I sent word to the island. They are laying low.
Movement to my right caused me to jump. Dr. Stevens came in, wincing at my reaction. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“It’s alright.”God, my voice.
I sounded like I had been smoking for forty years. I sat back in the chair, putting a foot on the edge of the seat, and watched the doctor work. He was very diligent. He told me the bullet was still in Collin’s heart and that it was too dangerous to remove it. It was extremely rare to have a bullet embed itself into the heart and the victim survive, but my demon did.
“You're a good woman.”
I blinked and looked up from my hand wrapped around Collin’s tattooed one. Dr. Stevens gave me a warm smile as he gestured to my lover. “The love you have for him is breathtaking.”
I struggled to swallow the lump in my throat, but I found myself nodding, wiping my tears with the back of my free hand. He sighed and came around the bed to get eye level with me.
“I am going to be forward with you, Ms. Jones.”
Another nod.
“This man shouldn’t be alive. In fact, he should have died ten minutes after he was shot,” he said softly. I whimpered and covered my mouth. “Collin Stevens isn’t alive because of some doctor, darling. He's alive because of you. The love you have for each other is the reason he kept fighting.”
My hand fell away. “That’s not very logical for you to say, Doc,” I hiccupped.
He chuckled. “I may be a doctor, but I was raised in a house full of love. I have also seen cases, like this and the victim doesn’t survive. But they didn’t have a woman like you by their side.” He gave me a small smile and put his hands in the pocket of his white coat.
“Everyone hates him. My family hates him. My friends hate him.” I didn’t know why I was admitting all of this to a stranger, but the words just fell from my mouth. “What if he wakes up, and I can’t get them to love him?” My chin wobbled.
“Then you just gotta loveforthem. You can do it.” With that, he gave me a wink and assured me he would be back to check in at sunrise.
Slowly, I looked at Collin’s face, memorizing every centimeter, from his perfect eyebrows, sharp cheekbones, straight nose, to his full lips. He was a work of art, art I could die staring at. I let out a sigh and shifted in my seat, burying my face in my palms.
We would get through this. We had to. There was no other option for me—for us.
On unsteady legs, I rose up and pressed my lips to his forehead.
“I’ll do it, Col. I’ll love you for all of them. I’ll be the one to give you the love you deserve,” I croaked, my tears falling onto his skin. “Just come back to me, okay? Don’t leave me. I can’t live a single day without you on this Earth.”
